Uncovering Evidence of Scotland’s Whisky History (Episode 915: January 10, 2022)

The excisemen of Scotland’s past never found all of the illegal whisky stills being used around the country, and traces of those illicit distilleries can be found to this day…if one knows where to look. Derek Alexander knows, and he’s on a mission to uncover as much of that history as possible in his role as an archaeologist with the National Trust for Scotland. His search started two decades ago with a project to uncover remains of The Glenlivet’s original distillery, and that project continues to this day as well, as he tells us on this week’s WhiskyCast In-Depth. In the news, the wood was flying at the Kentucky Cooperage on New Year’s Day, but it wasn’t from the coopers…a tornado hit the cooperage with 100mph winds. We’ll have the details on that and the rest of the whisky news for the first week of 2022, along with tasting notes and a debate over whether liquor stores should be jacking up the price of Pappy Van Winkle and other rare whiskies.

Links: National Trust for Scotland | Independent Stave/Kentucky Cooperage | Powerscourt Distillery | Smooth Ambler | Scotch Whisky Association | The Cabrach Trust | WhistlePig Whiskey | The Gospel | Westward Whiskey | Woodford Reserve | Highland Park | Old Rip Van Winkle | Brother’s Bond Bourbon